Thermoluminescence dating with quartz is based on the fact that heating the crystals results in loss (as light) of the irradiation energy accumulated within the molecule as the result of exposure to radiation. Thus, quartz crystals in pottery are exposed to radiation from thenaturally occurring radioisotope in clay, and the amount of light given off is related to the time since the object was last heated. Molecular defects in quartz crystals influence the fluorescence, and mechanisms of such effects and possible relations to thermoluminescence dating are discussed. -- AATA